A Sick Day
by bloodredstars
Summary: When Syaoran gets sick, it brings up problems than neither him or Sakura had anticipated.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1: Contraction**

" _Screech! Screech! Screech!"_

"Mmmh." Syaoran grunted out as the sound of his phone's alarm pierced through his sleepy self. Slowly, he opened his eyes while his hand groped blindly for his phone, which was on a cupboard next to his bed, until he felt his finger bump into it's corner. He grabbed it and quickly disabled the obnoxious alarm, though he was a little blinded by the flash of it's display.

' _5.30, that's odd.'_ he thought to himself as he read the digits on his phone. He shut off the alarm and rubbed his eyes. He had set three alarms in five-minute intervals to reduce his chances of oversleeping with 5.30 being the last. Despite that, he had usually always woken up as soon as the first alarm rang.

' _Well, whatever.'_ It wasn't like he was late or anything. In fact, 5.30 was still comparatively early to his friends, who he found out during a conversation woke up around 6.00 on average since their school starts at 8.00. However, he had his own reason for waking up early; he wanted to walk with Sakura to school. Since Sakura's house was actually out of his way, he had to wake up earlier to get ready for school and meet her. Sakura herself had insisted on a closer meeting point so she wouldn't trouble him as much, but he gave himself extra time just to be safe, with 5.30 being the absolute latest he could get.

' _Alright, I'll start getting ready.'_ With ten minutes gone, he just had to work faster; he'd take a shower, make his breakfast and lunch for the day and then go to meet Sakura. It was a slight change but he can work with it…

' _Huh? That's weird.'_ Syaoran tried to lift himself from the bed to sit up but found he was lacking the strength. He tried a second time with more effort but managed to pick himself up a short distance before he gave way under his own weight. He panted in exhaustion and felt hot air on the tip of his nose, exceedingly hot. Alarm bells rang in his head. Immediately, he put his hand on his forehead. Sure enough, it was also hot and wet with beads of sweat. In fact, his whole body was sweating.

He was sick.

"I can't be sick." he muttered in defiance despite the evidence before him. Syaoran just couldn't accept it; he constantly made sure he was healthy especially since he was currently living alone. Even so, the feeling of exhaustion was overtaking him. He looked at the phone still in his hand. Through hazy vision, he saw the digits on his lock screen: 5.35.

"Have to… get ready." Bracing his hands, Syaoran pushed upwards with all his might until he finally sat up on his bed. ' _Right.'_ One step done, he slid his feet down to the floor and slowly stood upright. He took a step slowly followed by another to make his way to the bathroom. Despite the slow steps, his breath was ragged. He tried his best to ignore it and looked at his destination: the bathroom door. Just a few more steps and he could reach the doorknob.

A wave of dizziness struck him and his vision started to waver. His head followed soon and spun wildly as if to tell him to lie down. In his delirium, he took an unbalanced step and tripped. In his current state, he could do little as his whole body followed suit. He fell flat to the ground hard enough to cause a thud. Through his confusion, he could feel pain from his knees and other parts of his body. He tried to muster the energy to get back up again but couldn't move himself from the floor. He shouldn't be lying on the floor. He had to get ready for school, he had to…

.

.

.

Syaoran opened his eyes to the surface of his bedroom floor. It took him a moment to remember why he was there.

"I had to go get ready."

' _How long was I out?'_ He got up slowly to avoid further disorienting himself, walked back to his bed and sat on the edge. He took his phone, which was still on the bed next to his pillow and turned on the screen. The time read 7:10. Below the number, there were two notifications: a missed call one saying that he had three missed calls from Sakura and below it a message notification from Sakura.

' _Dammit, I missed it._ ' He pressed the message notification and read Sakura's message. ' _I see. She's on duty._ ' Judging by the time, she'd probably still be cleaning up the class now. He thought about calling her later to avoid disturbing her but decided he should do it now while he was capable of doing so. He pressed the call button and waited. Three dial tones later, the call connected and unmistakably cheery voice answered.

" _Hello, Syaoran-kun?"_

He smiled as he heard her speak through the phone It seemed her voice always had that effect on him. "Good morning, Sakura."

" _Good morning, Syaoran-kun!"_ she replied with more cheer.

"I got your message. I'm sorry I couldn't come and meet you today." He was about to explain himself but remembered she was currently on duty. "I'm not disturbing you, aren't I?"

There was a slight pause from her end but she quickly came back. _"Er, it's fine. Anyways why didn't you come?"_ She sounded like she was about to say more when she suddenly stopped.

" _Syaoran-kun, are you okay?"_

The question took him by surprise. He hadn't mentioned anything yet about being sick to her, but she had somehow picked up on it. It was then he realized he was breathing raggedly and the receiver must've picked up on it. Well, it wasn't like she wasn't going to find out sooner or later. Reluctantly, he answered her question.

"I'm sorry, Sakura. I got a little fever so I couldn't meet you like usual."

Her reaction was immediate and explosive as he had anticipated _. "Eh, you're sick?! Are you okay?! How bad is it?"_ Even though it was the truth, he felt some guilt in making her worry and quickly set out to defuse her concern.

"It's okay. It's not that bad." He couldn't tell if that was the truth or not. Certainly he had been sick before but he never recalled it being to this degree. His head was already getting heavier. "I just need to get some rest."

His words did not placate her worries. _"How hot is your fever? Have you at least eaten something? Have you taken any medicine yet?"_

"Don't worry, Sakura." He tried to sound as normal as possible. "I'm fine. I'll take some medicine and then I'll go back to bed."

" _Is there something I can do? Maybe I can come over and-"_

"No!" He cut her off immediately, then immediately checked his tone. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to raise my voice. I just didn't want you to worry too much. Besides, if you catch my sickness I'll feel bad. Don't worry Sakura, I'll better in no time. You should get back to preparing the classroom." He made sure to sound as relaxed as possible. "I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"

This time there was a long pause from the other end before Sakura spoke again. _"Okay. Just be careful. Don't exert yourself too much."_

"I won't." Syaoran felt a sting in his heart. Her voice sounded sad now. "Good bye, Sakura."

" _Good bye, Syaoran-kun. Get well soon."_ With that, he hung up the phone before clutching his head with his hands.

' _I'm an idiot.'_ He had intended to make sure Sakura wasn't worried but in the process had ended up raising her voice to her. Of course, he hated making Sakura worry for any reason, especially if it was because of him, but he had pushed too far. He clutched his head tighter, tangling his fingers within his brown hair.

' _This damned cold!'_ Syaoran got up more determined than ever to get rid of his sickness. He had to get better soon so he could apologize face-to-face properly. He'll eat some food, take some medicine, change his clothes and then have a rest. Hopefully, things will get better by then.

They didn't.

Syaoran awoke again after the latest in a series of attempts at resting, the quality of which was subpar at best. Rather than fully sleeping, he cycled back and forth between sleeping and waking, never fully committing to either. He'd get a few moments of light sleep followed by an abrupt awakening. It didn't help that his fever became more intense; each time he woke up covered in sweat and burning was more uncomfortable than the last.

' _Enough of this.'_ He sat up slowly and took a small towel he had put on the side of his bed and wiped down his sweat. Then, he went to the bathroom and returned to the bed. When he returned, he grabbed the thermometer by his bedside and placed the machine on his temple. After a beep, he removed it and looked at the reading.

' _38.5_ _C.'_ Syaoran leaned his head back to the head of his bed. His mind was tired from the constant back and forth between sleep and waking. Added to the dizziness from the fever, resting had overall made him all the more the restless.

Not that he'd done any favors for himself, either.Between the tossing and turning, he'd kept himself awake thinking about things. First, he tried to piece together how he got the cold and any possible people he could've contracted it from but couldn't find a result amongst his friends and ended up with nothing. Then, he thought about Sakura, which immediately brought up his earlier outburst. That made him so much more agitated that he forced himself to rest so he could quickly get better. The sense of urgency, however, didn't do any favors in helping him get some shuteye.

' _If only there was a way to get better quickly.'_ Syaoran thought to himself. He cycled through the things he knew; eating hot food like porridge usually helped but as he currently was he didn't trust himself to be in the kitchen. His mind then wandered through a different kind of solution: magic. It was possible, but even with all the things he'd learned Syaoran didn't know anything to help with this kind of problem.

But he knew someone who might.

He reached for his phone and opened his contacts. Immediately, he typed in the contact profile of the person he was searching for. After finding it, he tapped the call button and waited for the reply. Three dial notes later, he heard the sound of the call connecting.

" _Good afternoon, Xiao Lang."_

Even through the receiver and separated by miles of sea, the voice of his mother commanded respect. "Good afternoon, Mother."

" _You sound unwell. Is everything alright?"_

' _Nothing gets past her.'_ He thought to himself. If he wasn't used to it by now, it would be scary how quickly she picked up on things. "Yeah, I'm a little sick right now."

" _It doesn't sound so little."_ she pointed out. True enough, his hoarse voice sounded sickly even to him. _"Have you eaten something and taken medicine?"_

"Yes, I have, but it's still running quite high. Do you know any remedies to help cure colds?"

There was a momentary silence before she answered. _"Eating hot liquid foods is always a good option. If you're well enough make yourself some soup or porridge. Add some ginger if you have any available; it can help with your recovery. I'll send you some simple recipes. Also, don't forget to stay hydrated and take plenty of rest."_

Syaoran listened to her suggestions; these were all good advice but there was another kind of remedy he had in mind. "What about magic? Are there any spells or incantations I could use? Maybe some potions or simple spells?"

This time there was a long pause. Syaoran waited expectantly for his mother's voice. Finally, she spoke again.

" _Xiao Lang."_

"Yes, Mother?"

" _Don't be stubborn."_

Syaoran tensed up. The message and the way she spoke it made it clear that she was angry. He swallowed nervously as he prepared himself for a scolding.

" _Magic, despite the implication of the word, is not some shortcut to every problem. You are already sick. Using magic at your current state will only drain more of your energy. Besides, self-healing magic is not very effective; you're essentially taking back the energy you're giving out or less; something is always lost in between."_

He could almost picture her standing over him and scolding him right now. Reflexively, he bent down his head in shame. "Or course, Mother. I'm sorry."

He could hear her sigh from the receiver. _"I understand wanting to get better but sometimes the best remedy is to rest."_

"Okay, Mother." he agreed, though so far it had been easier said than done.

There was a long pause from her end. Syaoran was about to ask if she was there when she spoke again. _"Is something bothering you, Xiao Lang?"_

Syaoran was stunned. This time it was actually scary just how precisely she'd hit the nail on the head. He considered not telling her; it would be easy to dismiss the question through a phone call even for his mother, but something told him not to do so.

"I did something I shouldn't have." The silence on the other end prodded him to continue. "I raised my voice to Sakura. I told her I was sick and she wanted to come over to help, but when she suggested it I just… yelled at her. I apologized straightaway but I want to do it properly to her face, so I want to get better quickly."

There was silence on the other end. Syaoran waited for what was coming. He'd never confided something like this to his mother before so he had no idea how she'd react.

" _You want to apologize for yelling at her?"_

"Yes." he replied nervously.

" _Do you think it will be enough?"_

' _What?'_ Even with no expectations, he was surprised at her response. After all, apologizing was only natural if you did something wrong. Did she mean he had to do more? "What do you mean?"

" _From what you've told me, you had a strong reaction when she wanted to come over. Is that correct?"_

"Yes."

" _Then do you know why you reacted that way?"_

The question hit him like a bomb. He hadn't thought about the reason behind his action. Looking back, it was almost instinctive how he immediately yelled at her, but why was that? He thought back to what he had felt at the moment; he had felt…

" _You can apologize for your mistake, but unless you know why you did it in the first place you're bound to repeat it again in the future. So find the answer to that question, Xiao Lang, and then apologize to her."_

"Okay, I will. Thank you, Mother." It never ceased to amaze him how his mother can say the right thing every time.

" _I'll send you the recipes, but if you're not up for it just eat anything available then take some medicine."_ She broke off a moment as she spoke to someone then returned to the call. _"I have to go now, Xiao Lang. Get well soon. I'll call you later."_

"Good bye, Mother."

He put down the phone as she hung up and sighed. That had not gone the way he planned at all, though he knew that he earned that scolding. Still, she had given him something to help nonetheless.

' _Why did I yell at her?'_ Syaoran searched back to that moment. Back then, he'd felt a sudden spike in his heart as she said that. It was almost like a defensive reaction, but to what?

His stomach answered for him, growling loudly as it churned from within. _'That's not exactly helping.'_ he thought, but it reminded him of another crucial detail; he had only eaten two loaves of bread in the morning and had basically skipped lunch.

Right on cue, his phone lit up as the message from his mother came through. His attention momentarily went to the time, which read 16.07. _'She must be in club practice right now.'_ The yearning to see her grew in his heart, but he managed to restrain himself with effort. Right now, he had to focus on getting better.

Syaoran opened up the recipes. They were all simple and straightforward in preparation, so he chose one recipe which he had the most ingredients for. He was slightly worried about using the kitchen in his current state but he wanted to get better. ' _I'll just have to be extra careful.'_ Just as he was about to get up though, he heard his doorbell rang.

' _Who could it be at this hour?'_ Slowly, he got up and shambled towards his bedroom door. As he got out of his bedroom, the doorbell rang again.

"Coming!" he shouted out, but his hoarse voice came out rather weakly. He dismissed it and walked past the living room to the apartment door. Aware of how defenseless he was right now, he readied to summon his sword just in case as he unlocked the door and opened it. However, the person in front of him made him drop all guard and he could only utter out her name in surprise.

"Sakura?"


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2: Visitation**

Sakura skipped merrily as she neared the corner. Today had started off great; she had woken up early, made a delicious breakfast by herself and her brother hadn't teased her much. The beautiful spring morning only further intensified her joy. As she neared her destination, she broke into a run. The joy within her was overflowing, and she couldn't wait to give it to her most cherished person.

"Good morning-"

Sakura looked at the sight of an empty street leading to the horizon. On either side were sakura trees not fully in bloom. It was a familiar sight but it was missing one thing.

"Syaoran-kun?" she uttered in confusion. She looked to the trees on the side of the road to see if he was standing outside of her view for some reason, but there was no one there. With no other place for him to stay out of sight, it was clear that he wasn't here and Sakura found herself at a loss. Syaoran had never been absent for their morning walk to school before.

' _Maybe he overslept?'_ she thought before quickly dismissing the idea. Syaoran was a very disciplined person; unlike her, he wouldn't make a careless mistake like waking up late. Still, it was the only reason she could think of. She knew that their meeting point was a distance away from his apartment, though not as far as her house; she had set this place as their meeting point to so that Syaoran wouldn't have to walk all the way to her house, which was his original intent. That being said, she also had another reason for choosing this place. This road was the place where Syaoran had surprised her when he returned and seeing him here each morning reminded her of that wonderful day. Today, however, that sight was not here.

"I'll try calling him." Sakura took out her phone from her pocket and dialed his number. She waited as the dial tone rang repeatedly but was met with nothing as the call cut off. She repeated the call again a couple of times but each time was met with the same automatic voice telling her that her call hadn't connected.

' _He's not answering. Where could he be?'_ Sakura considered her options. She could wait here but there was no indication of when he would come. Alternatively, she could try to catch him on the road. However, there was a chance she would miss him and then she'd be late for school.

Seeing no other choice, Sakura decided the best thing to do was go to school first; she was on duty with Tomoyo today so she had to get there early, and though Tomoyo would understand of her situation she didn't want to keep her friend waiting. She'll just have to meet him at school; Syaoran wasn't the type to skip school after all. She opened her phone and sent him a message: _"Good morning, Syaoran-kun! Where are you? You're not at our meeting place. I have to go first because I have class duty today. I'll see you at school!"_ She followed up the message with a smiling sticker and thought about adding a heart one as well before embarrassing herself out of that idea. With that done, she continued on her way.

' _It sure is a long walk to school.'_ Sakura thought to herself. Usually, she would be talking with Syaoran the whole way and before she knew it, they would have arrived. Without him, however, it felt long and lonesome. It was a welcome break from her loneliness when she saw Tomoyo as she neared the school gates. Seeing her longtime best friend brought the cheer back in her spirits and prompted her to run to the black-haired girl.

"Good morning, Tomoyo-chan!" she shouted cheerfully.

Tomoyo looked at the smiling girl approaching her and gave her own sweet smile. "Good morning, Sakura-chan." Suddenly, she noticed something and looked to her side where another person usually was. "You didn't come with Li-kun today?"

"No." Sakura answered disappointedly. "He wasn't at our usual meeting place. I tried calling him but he didn't answer." She sighed dejectedly. "And my morning was going great today."

"Cheer up, Sakura-chan." Tomoyo smiled. "I'm sure he'll be here later, then you can talk to him again."

Sakura smiled. Tomoyo always knew the right words to cheer her up. "Yes!" They walked inside the school and made their way to their classroom.

.

.

.

The classroom was still empty when they got there. Both of them set down their bags and immediately divided up the work between them. "I'll sweep up the classroom and you take care of the board." Tomoyo said.

"Yes!" Sakura replied cheerfully. They set about their work which was going quick. She and Tomoyo had a good rapport between them. The pace was going fine when a sound rang suddenly in the empty classroom.

"- _Horra catch you, catch you, catch me, catch me, matte-"_

As soon as she heard the ringtone, Sakura wasted no time; she dropped the board eraser she was using and immediately rushed to her desk. She grabbed the phone from her desk and looked at the screen: the words Syaoran-kun and his picture were there above a prompt for her to answer. She slid the prompt up and placed the phone on her ear.

"Hello, Syaoran-kun?"

" _Good morning, Sakura."_

Hearing his voice through the receiver immediately lifted her spirits. "Good morning, Syaoran-kun!"

" _I got your message. I'm sorry I couldn't come and meet you today. I'm not disturbing you, aren't I?"_

The question made her realize that she had just abandoned her duty. Sakura turned around towards Tomoyo with an apologetic face and mouthed her apology. Tomoyo made an OK sign and mouthed that it was okay. "Er, it's fine. Anyways, why didn't you come?" Suddenly, the heavy panting from the other ine came to her attention. "Syaoran-kun, are you okay?"

There was a moment of silence, almost like hesitation. _"I'm sorry, Sakura. I got a little fever so I couldn't meet you like usual."_

"Eh, you're sick?!" The news shocked her more than it should. After all, Syaoran was always the perfect picture of good health. "Are you okay?! How bad is it?"

" _It's okay. It's not that bad. I just need to get some rest."_

His words didn't convince her, especially since his voice sounded a little off. "How hot is your fever? Have you at least eaten something? Have you taken any medicine yet?" Her mind worked harder, trying to find what other details she should be worried about.

" _Don't worry, Sakura. I'm fine. I'll take some medicine and then I'll go back to bed."_

He made it sound so simple, but it didn't dissuage her worries. She felt like she had to help somehow. "Is there anything I can do? Maybe I can come over and-"

" _No!"_

The voice was loud and clear, shocking her to her very core. It wasn't quite yelling, but Syaoran had raised his voice. Neither of them talked for a moment before Syaoran finally spoke again, this time in his normal tone.

" _I'm sorry. I didn't mean to raise my voice. I just didn't want you to worry too much. Besides, if you catch my sickness I'll feel bad. Don't worry Sakura, I'll better in no time. You should get back to preparing the classroom."_

She opened her mouth to say more, but stopped. His voice was still echoing inside her. "Okay." she agreed reluctantly. "Just be careful. Don't exert yourself too much."

" _I won't. Good bye, Sakura."_

"Good bye, Syaoran-kun." she spoke with sorrow. "Get well soon." As the call disconnected, she put down the phone on her desk and sighed.

"Is Syaoran-kun okay?"

Sakura turned her attention to Tomoyo who was looking at her with solemn eyes. Her best friend was now a few steps away from her.

"No. He's sick." Sakura spoke dejectedly. "He said he was okay, but it sounded pretty bad." The sound of Syaoran raising his voice rang again in his ears and tears welled up in her eyes. "I think he's angry at me. I know I can worry too much, but…"

A sudden warm hand in her shoulder distracted her from her worries. Sakura looked up to see Tomoyo's face in front of hers.

"It's okay. It's normal to be worried for the people you care about. Li-kun probably didn't want you to be worried all the time. He definitely wouldn't want you feel sad; he'd want you to cheer up."

Tomoyo's words relieved some of the weight in her chest. She placed her hand on her chest and took a deep breath. "You're right, Tomoyo-chan. Syaoran-kun wouldn't want that." She reached out and clasped her best friend's hand. "Thank you, Tomoyo-chan."

"You're welcome." Tomoyo gave her brightest smile and clasped Sakura's hand back gently for a moment before letting go. "Now, let's get the class ready."

"You're right." Sakura walked back to the board. "Thank you, Tomoyo." she spoke again. "You always know how to cheer me up."

Tomoyo smiled. "It's okay. I wouldn't want to see you sad, Sakura-chan, although…"

"Eh?" Sakura was curious. What did her friend have to say?

"YOU'RE SO CUTE WHEN YOU'RE WORRIED!" Tomoyo shouted out. Her eyes sparkled with unbridled enthusiasm. "Sakura-chan's expressions back there were **golden**! I wish I brought my camcorder but I had to settle for my phone. I can't wait to look at the footage when I get home!" she shouted cheerily.

As always, her friend's outburst left her speechless, except for a single word.

"Hoeee…"

"Ah, so he caught a cold, huh?" Chiharu spoke as she finished listening to Sakura's story. "I wondered why he wasn't in class today."

"Speaking of which," Yamazaki suddenly interjected. "Did you know that colds were originally called-"

He never got to finish that story as Chiharu stuffed a large eggroll from her lunchbox down his throat. "Still," she continued as if there were no interruptions. "It's surprising to hear. I mean, Li-kun always looks like he's in good health."

"Well, there are other things that can determine if you catch a cold." Naoko reasoned. "My dad also caught a cold once even though his health seemed fine."

"Yeah, I guess so." Chiharu agreed. "What do you think, Sakura?"

"Yeah." Sakura agreed half-heartedly. She had not been able to focus during the morning lessons as her mind kept going back to Syaoran. He'd been a large part of her daily life for a long time now that she felt something was missing without him there.

"You should go visit him."

"Eh?" Sakura looked up at Chiharu, who was looking at her intently.

"I said you should go visit him after school." she repeated. "You're clearly worried about him, so you should check to see if he's alright."

"Hoeee?!" Sakura put up her hands and shook them vigorously. "I can't do that!" she protested.

"Why not? You both are going out after all. It's only normal for a girlfriend to visit her boyfriend when he's sick."

"Well, I mean-" Sakura's face turned pink. "I want to, but I don't want to impose on him, especially if he's sick." Again, the phone call earlier came to mind. "I'll just be a bother to him."

"Silly, you're not going to bother him." Chiharu rebutted. "If anything, he'll be thrilled. The person you like taking care of you when you're sick, who wouldn't want that?"

"You've never done that for me, though." Yamazaki interjected.

A second eggroll silenced the protest. "I'm telling you, Sakura. You should totally do it!"

"I agree!" Naoko seconded.

"Me too!" added Tomoyo who had been silent until now.

"But…" Sakura bit her thumbnail lightly. "When I told him I wanted to come over earlier, he said not to come." A sharp pain rose in her chest as she remembered his strong reaction.

"Kinomoto-san."

Sakura looked up to see Yamazaki smiling at her.

"Li-kun isn't always honest with himself, but in the end he's quite a simple person. I'm sure he'd be happy if you came, even if he doesn't say it."

That sealed the deal. All of her friends looked at her with anticipation. It dawned on her how absurd it was that they had to encourage her in the first place; it wasn't like she didn't want to go in the first place. _'I should have more confidence. I am his girlfriend.'_ she reminded herself.

"I'll do it!" Sakura declared with conviction. The declaration earned a round of applause from her friends.

"Li-kun will be so happy!" Tomoyo exclaimed. "I wish I could come and record you but I have singing practice today."

Tomoyo's words reminded her of her own club. "Ah, that's right! I also have club practice-"

Chiharu placed a hand on her. "Don't worry. I'll cover for you. This is a very important matter after all." She gave Sakura a mischievous wink.

Sakura's face turned a shade of red. "Thank you, Chiharu-chan."

"Right then, it's decided." Chiharu concluded. "Now, we'd better hurry up. Lunchtime is almost over."

The rest of school had gone a little better; she wasn't as worried as she had been before. All the same, she felt excitement in her heart. As soon as the final bell rang and homeroom was over, Sakura wasted no time; she quickly packed her bags and headed out the school gates, picking up some handouts for Syaoran from Chiharu, who was in his class, along the way.

' _Right, let's go.'_ Sakura set off, but before she went to the apartment she made a quick stop first. She had recalled when Syaoran told her that there was a supermarket he shopped at nearby his apartment where he did his monthly shopping. She'd been amazed by how self-reliant he was back when she'd heard the story. Right now, however, that knowledge would serve her. Recalling it's location from their conversation, she managed to find it and buy the ingredients she needed. It was a simple porridge recipe her father taught her. He'd said it was effective for colds and she hoped that was true now.

After she finished shopping, Sakura headed for his apartment. It was closer than she'd expected. After a few turns she was already near the building. She looked up at the tall structure and walked closer. However, with each step nervousness came over her. As she entered the compound and took the elevator up to his floor, the feeling intensified. The reason for that had been on the back of her mind, but was now the only thing she can think about now that she was here:

' _I've never been too Syaoran-kun's place alone before.'_

Well, that wasn't technically true; she'd been here before to wish him a happy New Year back when the Clow Cards were becoming Sakura Cards. More recently, she and her friends would often study at his place as Syaoran offered to tutor some of them. However, today was different: she was coming alone as his girlfriend and Syaoran was living alone now. The thought of the both of them being alone in his place both excited and frightened her.

' _Oh no, I'm getting too conscious.'_ She put her hands on her face and tried to shake off her embarrassment, dangling her schoolbag and the bag of groceries she had. ' _This won't do. I've got to stop being so afraid so we can move forward.'_ Since Syaoran returned, their relationship had been progressing slowly. It didn't help that they had to deal with the Clear Cards for a while. She remembered Meiling had said that she was "dense", but she hadn't picked up on it back then. Now, she knew better and couldn't help but agree.

' _No, I can't get myself down!"_ She summoned her resolve and reminded herself that things were different now. They weren't the awkward couple in their first-year of middle school anymore; they were in their third year now. It had taken them a while, but they had gotten used to being around each other. They regularly went on dates and they were less hesitant with physical contact, though it still embarrassed both of them especially in public. This was a step she hadn't taken, but they'd progressed enough to get there.

The doors of the elevator opened, almost challenging her to come forth. Sakura swallowed nervously as she took a hesitant step outside the elevator, then she skipped the rest of her body out as if the elevator would swallow her if she didn't get out too fast. Truthfully, she was afraid of chickening out if she waited too long. Having passed her checkpoint, she traversed the floor to Syaoran's building. It wasn't long before she set her sights on his door on her left. As she walked, she took a moment to enjoy the beautiful view of Tomoeda on her right. It helped to calm her nerves as she finally reached the front of Syaoran's door.

Sakura looked at the wooden structure and froze. Behind that door, Syaoran was probably resting. The morning's phone call echoed in her mind. He had said not to worry about and yet here she was coming here because she was worried. _'Is he going to be mad that I came?'_ He'd never been angry at her before but she pictured it on her head nonetheless. The bottom of her eyes stung as tears threatened to gather.

' _No! I can't cry!'_ She shook her head vigorously to dispel those illusions and looked at the doorbell. It was a simple action; all she needed to do was press the little black button, but it felt as hard as climbing a huge mountain. Sakura raised a finger and approached it slowly. As her finger neared the doorbell, her heart beat harder and harder till she could hear it in her ears…

And then with a swift move, she pressed the button and withdrew her hand immediately. Inside, she could hear the voice of the doorbell echoing throughout the room.

' _I did it!'_ She clenched down on her heart, which was still beating wildly. There was no turning back now; all she could do was to wait for Syaoran to answer. She stood in front of his doorway for a few moments but grew restless as she could hear no response.

' _Maybe he didn't hear me.'_ Sakura pressed the doorbell again. This time she heard his voice telling her he was coming, though it sounded rather hoarse, either from sickness or anger. She hoped it wasn't the latter as she heard his steps approaching. A few seconds later, there was the sound of the door being unlocked. As the door fully unlocked and swung forward, Sakura tensed and clutched both bags tighter. This was it; how would he react? Would he be happy? Angry? Surprised?

"Sakura?"

Syaoran fully came to view, dressed in sweatpants and a blue long sleeved shirt. The expression on his face showed how surprised he was. However, Sakura's attention wasn't on the fact that he wasn't angry.

She saw how his face was tinged a little with red.

She saw how much he was sweating was all over his body, creating dark creases on his pits and the bottom of his collar.

She saw how tired he's sounded when speaking her name.

It was at that moment all her worries and nervousness evaporated. In it's place, was a single thought. She took a deep breath and gave her brightest smile.

"Good afternoon, Syaoran-kun!"

' _I'm going to take care of you.'_


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: Treatment**

He couldn't believe his eyes.

She was actually here standing in front of him.

He could see she was holding her school bag and a plastic bag of what appeared to be some vegetables and other assorted ingredients, but his attention was mostly on her emerald eyes looking at him. For a moment, she looked at him as if she was also surprised to see him.

Then in a moment, it was gone and as if out of nowhere, the cheer returned to her face.

"Good afternoon, Syaoran-kun!" she greeted him with the brightest smile. At that moment, he swore he had never seen her so beautiful before. He'd seen her smile before but never as she did now. Her beauty was further accentuated with the sun shining behind her, giving the illusion that she was glowing. Perhaps she was and he was too sick to realize it. She was as cheerful and sparkling as she ever was if not more. It was almost as if she was the same as usual.

As if he hadn't done something terrible to her.

"Syaoran-kun?" Sakura looked at him questioningly.

"Eh?" Syaoran shook off his reverie and allowed himself to process what was going on clearly. "Sakura, what are you doing here?"

"Well, I wanted to see how you were doing. I also thought I'd make something to help you get better." She lifted up the plastic bag. "I didn't know what you had available in your home though so I ended up buying all the ingredients."

"No, I mean- Aren't you supposed to be at school?"

"Ah, that! Don't worry, Chiharu-chan covered for me. The Cheerleading Club doesn't have a lot of activities yet. We're mostly just training the new members, so Chiharu-chan can manage. Besides…" Sakura's face blushed lightly but she kept smiling at him. "I wanted to come see you."

Syaoran felt heat rising up to his cheeks. He wondered if this wasn't making his fever worse, though he personally didn't mind.

Sakura, however, did mind. "Syaoran-kun, are you okay? You look like you're burning up." Her face was now full of concern.

"Ah, I'm fine. Rather than that, you shouldn't be standing out here all day." He turned back towards his apartment and gestured to her. "Come on in."

Sakura smiled at the invitation. "Pardon the intrusion." She followed behind him and shut the door behind her before removing her shoes. Both of them immediately headed to the living room.

"You can put the bag there if you want." Syaoran gestured towards the sofa.

"Thanks." She put her schoolbag down and looked towards the kitchen, which was right across the living room. "Well, I'll get started right away."

Syaoran nodded. "There's an apron by the table if you want to use it. The cooking utensils are on the top left drawer. The pots and pans are on the bottom one and-" Syaoran stopped. "Maybe it'll be better if I just show you-"

"No, Syaoran-kun."

Syaoran looked at her in shock as Sakura stood in front of him with both hands on his shoulders. "You're still not well. You need to take a rest. Wait here while I prepare the meal. Don't worry, I won't make a mess." she said giving him playful wink.

Syaoran felt the heat on his face intensify. He could only imagine how red his face must be. "O-okay." he managed to stumble out before taking a step back to clear his throat. "Just tell me if you need anything."

"Okay!" With that, she skipped merrily to the kitchen with her plastic bag while he took a seat on the sofa. He needed a breather after what he'd just been through.

' _She's unusually bold today.'_ Not that he didn't like it, but it was rare to see her so assertive. He thought it was quite cute in it's own way. Still, he was worried about the incident this morning. The thought occurred to him that she might be hiding her feelings not to worry him, but he knew her long enough to know when she's faking a smile and so far she looked like she was her usual self. In it's own way, that made him feel worse because he hadn't earned her forgiveness. Yet here she was, in his apartment, making him food.

And then it hit him.

' _She's here by herself with me in my apartment.'_ He had been too preoccupied with his sickness and her surprise visit to think about that. His head began to spin from the amount of heat that was on it now. _'Okay, calm down! She's just visiting to check on me, that's all. It's because I'm sick. '_ It wasn't like he was going to do anything to her even if he wasn't ill, but it did remind him to be careful around her so she doesn't get sick. Besides, he did what he had to; it wasn't like he was going to send her home after she'd made all the effort to see him.

"Syaoran-kun?" she called from the kitchen. "Do you want something to drink?"

"Ah." He dismissed his internal debate and turned towards her. "Some tea will do. It's in the top cupboard."

"Okay." She turned back towards the kitchen and continued her preparations. Syaoran, however, kept his eyes on her as she worked in his kitchen with his blue apron. She'd taken off her black uniform jacket and put the apron over it, probably so she wouldn't get so hot while she cooked. It surprised him how relaxed she was even though it was his apartment. She already looked like she was at home here.

' _I wouldn't mind that at all.'_

The thought appeared in his mind before he realized it. When he did, it made him heat up again. He turned away from her to avoid getting more excited and calmed himself down. There was no point in getting himself worked up when he was sick, though it was pleasant to have her here, if he was being honest to himself.

So why was he opposed to her coming over before?

Again, his mother's words echoed in his mind. Find your answer, she had said. He had to be honest to himself if he was to do that, just like before when he saw her. He looked up at the ceiling and closed his eyes. _'I was…'_

.

.

.

"Syaoran-kun?"

He stirred awake as he heard the voice calling him. Shaking off his sleepiness, he opened his eyes to see Sakura looking at him. She had taken off the apron and put on her uniform jacket again.

"Sorry for waking you. Your meal's ready." She gestured towards the table where a bowl of steaming hot porridge was sitting next to a cup of tea.

"I see. Thank you, Sakura. Sorry I fell asleep."

Sakura sat down by his right and smiled. "You don't have to apologize; it's normal to be tired when you're sick."

Syaoran smiled back and looked at the food. It was fairly straightforward; a bowl of porridge with some vegetables inside, but to him it looked like the most appetizing bowl of porridge he'd ever seen. It was certainly better looking than the pictures of food his sisters keep sending him.

"Thank you for the meal." he declared before he reached for the bowl. Syaoran grabbed the spoon inside and took a spoonful of porridge with a piece of vegetable. After blowing gently to reduce the heat, he put the spoonful in his mouth. As the warm mixture hit his tongue, the warm air flowed through his inflamed throat cavity, clearing it up a little. Although his sense of taste was limited, he could pick up the soft, savory flavor of the porridge along with the vegetable. Their flavors combined as he chewed them to pieces before swallowing them.

"How is it?" Sakura asked. She looked a little nervous this time, as she always did when he tasted her cooking.

"It's delicious." he replied wholeheartedly.

The response lit up her face. "I'm glad you like it! I've never made it myself so was worried I didn't get it right. Dad said he used to make this for us when we were sick so it should help you get better."

"I see." He looked up at her and gave her a gentle smile. "Thank you, Sakura."

This time it was her turn to blush. She turned away from him immediately to hide her face. She wasn't sure what kind of expression she had on right now, but if how hard it was to hold her smile was any indication, it probably looked silly. However, it meant she didn't see the pained expression he was now making.

"I'm sorry."

The seriousness in his voice brought her back. She looked at him, confused. "Eh, for what?"

Syaoran locked eyes with her. "This morning I yelled at you when you wanted to come over. I shouldn't have done that."

Sakura realized that she hadn't thought about that incident since she came here but looking at her boyfriend's burdened expression it was clear he was still hung up over it. While it was admittedly refreshing to hear the apology, she wasn't bothered by it any longer. "It's fine, Syaoran-kun. I'm okay. I know you were just looking out for me, since you didn't want me to catch a cold too-"

"No." Syaoran shook his head. "That wasn't the reason." It took him a moment to realize how bad that sounded. He panicked and shook his hands fervently. "Ah, that's not what I meant! It's not that I want you to get sick or anything. I am worried about that as well but…" he settled down and sighed. "It wasn't why I yelled at you this morning."

He turned away from her and looked down at his hands, both of which were clutched into fists. "I'm always worried about you, Sakura. It took a lot of time for me to finally be allowed to return here to Tomoeda and be with you. For a time, I thought that everything would be fine once I reached that goal. But then, the Clear Cards happened. We managed to get through that together, but…" He winced physically as the truth weighed down like a stone on his chest, but he wasn't going hold anything back. "There's always the chance that another threat will come. You're strong, Sakura; one of the strongest magicians I know. That power will attract other strong powers towards you, and they won't always have the friendliest intentions. I wanted to be strong enough to protect you when trouble comes; I still do now."

"So when I got sick this morning, I was really angry at myself. I couldn't accept that of all things, it would be something so simple that would get me. It made me feel weak that I couldn't protect myself and if I can't protect myself, then I can't protect you. When you said you wanted to come here, I snapped at you for my own selfish reason: because I didn't want you to see me weak and helpless like this. Even now, I still feel like I'm being a burden." He relaxed his hands and sighed. The pressure had subsided somewhat but he couldn't look up; he didn't dare to see how she was reacting right now.

So, it was surprising when her hands grabbed his own. He felt the soft fingers pulling him; it wasn't particularly strong, but it was much more force than he had anticipated which caught him off-guard nonetheless. He looked up to see Sakura wearing a frustrated but spirited face.

"You have _never_ been a burden to me!" she shouted. It wasn't quite anger, but nonetheless the strength of her emotion was conveyed. "You have always been there for me through my bad times! The Clow Cards, the Sakura Cards, and the Clear Cards: All of it wouldn't have been possible if you weren't there! Even now, I'm always relying on you for the simplest things like studying! How can you say something like you're being a burden after everything you've done for me?!"

Sakura stopped and caught her breath as she finished her outburst. Meanwhile, Syaoran was left speechless. As her heart calmed down, she leaned forward using their locked hands as an anchor and placed her head on his chest.

"You've always been strong to me, Syaoran-kun, but it's not only because of how well you fight or how good your magic is, but the strength of your heart. You're always motivated; you know what you want to do and how to do it. But through it all, you've never forgotten to be kind. You're always considerate to the people around you and you try your best not to hurt them. That's why you're strong." She clutched his sleeves and dug her head deeper into his shirt until she could feel his body heat. "That's why I love you."

Syaoran could feel her body slump as she pressed close to him and felt her rise up and down as she tried to catch her breath. Her outburst had clearly taken a lot out of her. Slowly, he raised his hands and put them around her, light squeezing her small frame.

"I'm sorry, Sakura. I was only thinking about how I feel. I didn't think about how I was making you feel."

Still in his embrace, Sakura shook her head lightly. "No, I'm glad you told me." She let out a sigh and pushed away from Syaoran, who reacted immediately and unlocked his hands from her. Once again, she sat away from him albeit a little closer than before. From here, she could see his troubled expression clearly. "I'm always happy when you tell me how you feel. It tells me that you trust me enough to let me get closer."

Sakura corrected her posture and sat upright. "The truth is, I'm always worried too. It seems like each time we want to get closer, there's always trouble heading our way. I know I can be quite slow in doing things, so I want to take every chance I can get to get closer to you, Syaoran-kun. Going to school, going on dates, or even dealing with magic; as long as it's with you I'm always happy. I know if something happens we'll always be there for each other, but I don't want to wait for the next crisis to cherish being with you." She chuckled to herself and covered her mouth in embarrassment. "Listen to me; I sound so silly right now worrying over nothing."

"It isn't silly." Syaoran spoke firmly. "If that's how you feel then it isn't nothing. The truth is you're right; I've been too focused on what bad things could happen that I forgot the good things that I have right now, and I got myself frustrated over nothing." Syaoran grabbed her hands and held them gently. "I love you, Sakura; I always have. From now on, I'll do better for the both of us."

Sakura felt like she was flying through air right now and she'd know, having actually experienced it. In her unbridled joy, she approached him again and gave him a passionate hug. Syaoran gladly accepted her and embraced her with equal passion. "Me too."

Both of them stayed locked in their embrace for a while. They could feel each other's presence as warmth radiated from the other. However, it was becoming apparent to the two of them that one was radiating more than the other. Sensing the increase in temperature, Sakura broke the embrace first and Syaoran followed suit. Both of them looked at each other's faces tinged with red, though there was more on Syaoran's part due to his fever.

"Guess we got a little carried away." Sakura spoke sheepishly.

"Yeah." Syaoran agreed before turning his attention to the porridge. "It must be getting cold. I should eat it while it's still warm." He reached for the bowl and was about to take a spoonful when Sakura interrupted him.

"Um…"

Syaoran turned to her. It looked like she wanted to say something. "What is it?"

Her face turned a strong shade of red as she played with her hand. "Well, since you're sick maybe I can spoon-feed you. If you're okay with it, that is."

Syaoran wasn't sure how many of these bombs he can take before he collapsed from overheating, but it felt like he was reaching his limit. "S-sure, go ahead."

The reply brightened her up even more. She grabbed the bowl enthusiastically and took a spoonful of porridge from it before offering it to him. "Here you go."

Syaoran passively opened his mouth and accepted the food. It was still quite warm and delicious. He looked at Sakura who was smiling as she looked at him with another spoonful ready to go.

Being taken care of wasn't so bad once in a while.


	4. Epilogue

**Epilogue: Recovery**

"Good morning, Syaoran-kun!"

Syaoran looked away from his phone as he heard the shout and to the source of the voice. Sure enough, Sakura was running towards him, schoolbag shaking in hand.

"Good morning, Sakura." he greeted back as she slowed and stopped short in front of him.

"How are you today, Syaoran-kun?" she asked with a hint of concern.

"I'm fine." He had to smile at the fact that she was still worried even after he recovered.

It had taken a short time for him to get better. After Sakura's visit, his fever subsided enough for him to move around without difficulty, but it wasn't until two days later that his fever finally subsided. Luckily, he had gotten sick at the end of the school week so he missed out on one school day and Sakura had given him the printouts for the lessons he missed. At his request, she had not come over again after her visit since he didn't want to risk her getting sick as well. That made this the first time he would get to properly spend time with her after getting sick. He had no idea how much he'd missed it especially after seeing her run towards him like she always does.

"Syaoran-kun? Is something wrong?"

He snapped out his thoughts to her puzzled face looking at him worriedly.

He smiled. "It's nothing. I was just thinking it's a wonderful morning today."

"Oh, I see." The answer brightened her up again. It was good to see that he wasn't brooding again. "It certainly is."

"So how was your morning?" he asked. They had started their walk towards school, so he kept up with her pace as she told him about her morning.

"Well to start with, I woke up early again today. I think I may be getting over my bad habit. It's a good thing, especially since Kero-chan likes sleeping in nowadays so there's no one to wake me if I miss my alarm."

"Well, that's good." He commented, but he knew something was coming around the corner.

She nodded in agreement before her face suddenly turned angry. "It would've been a perfect morning if it weren't for Onii-chan."

' _There it is.'_ It wasn't a Sakura morning if her brother wasn't teasing her. It was almost a given each morning that her brother would wind her up and she'd vent out her frustration to him, but he didn't mind if it was familiar.

"I swear, nothing I do will ever be good enough to satisfy him. Every time I cook it's always the same 'good enough for a monster' comment." She pouted indignantly. "Just once, I wish I could cook something different, something good enough that would shut him up."

He considered her words and thought of an idea. "Well, I could show you some recipes if you want. My sisters taught me some dishes before I left. They're Chinese recipes but the ingredients are pretty common so it shouldn't be a problem and it would be something different from what you usually eat."

Sakura's face lit up. "Really?! That would be great. Thank you, Syaoran-kun!"

He nodded before looking up away from her eyes. His face had turned a shade of red all the way to his ears. "Maybe we could cook together back at my place. I'm not sick anymore so it would be okay for you to come over now." He gave a nervous cough. "If you want to, that is."

"Oh." She looked down as her face also reddened. Both of them walked in silence for a while like a pair of tomatoes before she whispered timidly. "I'd love to."

"I-I see. Good, then." Both of them turned to look at each other and stared at the other's eyes before breaking into a smile together. He reached out for her hand and took it gently. "It's a date, then."

"Mmmm." Sakura agreed with a bashful smile while squeezing his hand back.

Today certainly was a wonderful morning.


End file.
